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Energy and transport at the heart of Europe’s agenda

Transport and energy are at the heart of European policies and have a considerable impact on the everyday life of citizens. There can be no unified area without these bridges between countries and people, and the removal of barriers between Member States has facilitated the free movement of persons and goods. Transport policy, plans for which began in 1957, is aimed at sustainable mobility combining Europe’s competitiveness with the welfare of its citizens, making for greater safety and security and enhanced rights. It is an essential component of the Lisbon strategy and contributes to the EU’s social and territorial cohesion. Energy policy also dates back to the beginnings of European integration, with the ECSC Treaty on coal and steel and the Euratom Treaty on the civil use of nuclear energy. However, it really took off in the 1990s with the creation of a genuine internal market for electricity and gas, the promotion of new energy sources and a more coordinated approach to security of supply.

The structure and tasks of Energy and Transport DG

Since June 2008 Antonio Tajani, Vice-President of the European Commission, has been in charge of transport policy, and Commissioner Andris Piebalgs has been in charge of energy policy. The Directorate‑General (DG) for Energy and Transport, headed by Matthias Ruete, has a staff of over 1 000 in ten Directorates located in Brussels and Luxembourg. The two Directorates in Luxembourg are responsible for coordinating nuclear policy, nuclear safeguards and radiation protection inspections. The DG exercises political scrutiny over the aviation, maritime and railway safety agencies, the Galileo Joint Undertaking and the Europoean GNSS Supervisory Authority. The Intelligent Energy Europe Executive Agency, which implements the financial aid programmes in the energy sector, and the Euratom Supply Agency, which monitors imports of nuclear material, also report to the Directorate‑General.  

In addition to the development of Community transport and energy policies, including dealing with State aid, the DG is responsible for managing the financial support programmes for the trans‑European networks, technological development and innovation, totalling on average €1 billion per annum for the period 2000‑2006.

The action carried out in recent years has substantially altered the European landscape:

• A real internal market for transport and energy is being created to make the EU more competitive, in the context of the Lisbon strategy: the purpose of this new integrated market is to guarantee the effective supply of quality services at affordable prices.
   

• Major infrastructures and high‑quality networks are being built, real arteries crisscrossing the entire European area and boosting the European economy.
   

• A European model of society is gradually developing to ensure the highest quality of services and guarantee fundamental rights for consumers.
   

• The impact on the environment is considerable. 94% of man-made CO₂ emissions are attributable to the energy sector. Energy used in transport produces over 28% of these emissions, at a time when the EU must take the measures needed to implement the Kyoto Protocol. Major energy and transport choices must be made which will commit the EU for the next 20 years.
   

• Safety and security requirements are growing. Isolated national action is insufficient to meet increasingly transnational and global challenges. Action to combat maritime pollution, malevolent acts and unsafe roads require concerted action by all countries.
   

• Globalisation requires flanking measures. The EU is a vehicle for organisation and regulation. While transport and energy issues are becoming increasingly global, only resolute coordinated action by Europe can avert the risks in terms of security of supply and promote worldwide action based on cooperation and interdependence.

Action at present in the fields of energy and transport is based on two Commission reference documents: The Green Paper “Towards a European strategy for the security of energy supply”, and the White Paper “European transport policy for 2010:Time to decide”. They reflect a marked change in policy aimed at speeding up the reforms needed, preparing for enlargement and slanting European policies towards citizens.

2005 was a pivotal year when stock was taken of the action over the last five years and future avenues of approach were identified.

Action during 2005 was focused on a number of priorities:

• Contributing to the EU’s competitiveness

• Completing the internal market: consolidating the aviation sector (advancing the opening‑up process, slots, groundhandling), effective application of the opening‑up of rail freight, opening‑up of international rail passenger transport, advancing the internal market for electricity and gas.
• Revising the rules for State aid for the various modes of transport to ensure consistency with the common policy and to ensure fair competition.
• Pursuing an active industrial policy strategy by launching new European industrial projects (ERTMS for rail, Sesar for air traffic control).

• Better protection for citizens

• Strengthening the rights of passengers in all modes of transport, whether by sea, rail, road (coach) or air.
• Monitoring the application by the Member States of the new passenger rights.
• Guaranteeing compliance with public service obligations in the context of the opening‑up of the market in electricity and natural gas.

• Encouraging sustainable development

• Working towards consistent taxation and transparent infrastructure charging to ensure a fair price for users and encourage a modal shift from road transport to more environment‑friendly modes.
• Reducing energy demand, in particular through a proactive energy efficiency policy, as outlined in a Green Paper.
• Promoting renewable energy sources in order to achieve a 22% share for “green” electricity by 2010.
• Developing the use of clean vehicles and, more generally, pursuing action in the field of clean energy and urban transport.

• Delivering the trans‑European networks, including Galileo

• Increasing the financial support to the 30 projects declared to be of European interest by 2020 and target it on cross‑border sections and missing links.
• Improving the management, coordination and financing of these projects, in particular by designating European coordinators and establishing an executive agency for managing the projects.
• Preparing a plan to extend the trans‑European networks to the EU’s neighbours.
• Choosing the operator to deploy and then exploit Galileo as from 2010.

• Increasing safety and security

• Supplementing the maritime safety measures with a new package allowing more controls and a modernised liability system.  
• Extending the responsibilities of the European aviation and maritime safety agencies to ensure increased coordination and the establishment of the European rail safety and interoperability agency.
• Developing inspections and transport security checks through inspections in Member States’ airports and ports.
• Guaranteeing a high level of nuclear safety and ensuring radiation protection.
• Taking stock of road‑safety measures to sharply reduce the number of fatalities each year and encourage a more harmonised European approach.

• Managing globalisation through practical international cooperation

• Giving the EU more weight in international organisations.
• Negotiating an EU‑USA agreement on an open transatlantic airspace.
• Conducting a more in‑depth energy dialogue with the energy‑producing countries, in particular Russia.
• Developing an ambitious neighbourhood policy, in particular with the Balkan countries.

ENERGY AND TRANSPORT, KEY FIGURES

• 6% of our energy comes from renewable energy sources; the target is 12% by 2010.
   
• 24.9% of oil imports (EU-15) comes from the Middle East and 29.8% of natural gas imports comes from Russia.
   
• 97.5%: oil’s share of fuel consumption in the transport sector.
   
• 8%: the percentage by which the EU is committed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions over the period 1990‑2010.
   
• 0.2%: the foreseeable growth in CO2 emissions over that period if nothing is done.
   
• 7.5 million jobs: the economic significance of the transport sector in the EU.
   
• 72%: of inland freight transport is carried by road, 17% by rail, 5.5% by inland waterway and 5.5% by pipelines.
   
• 92% of inland passenger transport is by road (83% by private car and 9% by bus and coach) and 8% by rail (7% by railway and 1% by tram or metro).
   
• 19% for freight and 13% for passengers: the increased need for mobility since 1995 (excluding maritime and air transport).
   
•  84.2% of CO2 emissions attributable to inland transport are generated by road transport.
   
•  5.3%: the reduction in the number of fatalities on the roads between 2000 and 2002.